Dr Shetty’s journey from a jobless medical rep to a billionaire is the stuff business dreams are made of. He moved to Abu Dhabi in 1973 with just AED20 in his pocket and debt back home in India. Over the next 45 years, Dr Shetty went on to build a healthcare and financial services empire.

Today, NMC Healthcare is one of the region’s largest integrated private healthcare providers, which last year listed on the London stock exchange. UAE Exchange – the money transfer firm he founded and of which he is chairman – helps Indian expatriate workers send money home, and has expanded across 700 offices in 31 countries.